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Successful entrepreneurs tend to have 10 key characteristics in common, writes Marty Zwilling of Startup Professionals. Among other things, they tend to be optimistic, focused on teamwork and are comfortable taking risks.

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Good ideas require the guidance of a skilled entrepreneur to become successful businesses, writes Marty Zwilling of Startup Professionals. It's important to be optimistic and to be skilled at communication, he writes. "People are energized by leaders who explain why and where they are going."

Startups have to fend off a number of competitive threats to achieve success. They must think about their current competitors in addition to the chance that other companies will enter the market, writes Marty Zwilling of Startup Professionals. They should also consider the alternatives that customers have to their product or service offerings.

Writing an effective executive summary for your business plan is crucial to attracting investors' attention, writes Marty Zwilling of Startup Professionals. Successful summaries should identify the market you are targeting, discuss your value proposition and explain what sets your company apart from the pack.

Innovative new technologies don't necessarily translate into successful companies, writes Marty Zwilling of Startup Professionals. "[T]he sad truth is that a technology not focused on a real problem is not a business, and will probably fail in the marketplace," he writes. Businesspeople need to focus on networking, continuous learning and building relationships, he notes.

Engineers might underestimate the difficulty of turning their ideas into successful businesses, writes Marty Zwilling of Startup Professionals. To prevent failure, engineers should use market research to make sure customers would be interested in their products and accept some risk, he writes. "Managing risk is good; eliminating risk is bad for startups."